A US judge temporarily blocked President Trump’s plan to pause the disbursements of federal grants and loans minutes before it was set to go into effect late Tuesday.
What to know about Trump’s plan to freeze federal aid
The Trump administration late Monday directed federal agencies to pause federal grants and loans in the US on Tuesday evening, in a sweeping move that threatens to disrupt education, healthcare, housing assistance, disaster relief and other programs that rely on the flow of federal money.
The acting director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which oversees the US federal budget, said the freeze was “temporary,” and necessary to ensure that all funding complies with executive orders signed by President Donald Trump.
Federal funding freeze sends shockwaves through Washington
In a memo sent to government agencies on Monday afternoon, the White House said that public servants had “a duty to align federal spending and action with the will of the American people as expressed through presidential priorities.”
The memo said this included “ending ‘wokeness’ and the weaponization of government,” among other objectives.
Some orders were intended to wind back environmental protections and efforts for diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI).
White House defends federal funding freeze
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Tuesday that the freeze is not a “blanket” stop on spending, and is intended to ensure that “every penny that is going out the door is not conflicting with the executive orders and actions that this president has taken.”
She added that welfare programs and food aid would not be affected.
Medicaid payment disruptions reported
New York Attorney General Letitia James said 20 states, including New York, had been frozen out of Medicaid systems that provide health care to millions of low-income Americans.
White House press secretary Leavitt later posted on social media to clarify payments would still be processed.
“We have confirmed no payments have been affected — they are still being processed and sent,” she said. “We expect the portal will be back online shortly.”
